Novozymes Launches Enzyme to Produce Sweeteners at the Lowest Cost of Conversion
24 Sep 2015 --- Novozymes announced the launch of Extenda, a new enzyme solution that lowers the cost of converting starch into sweeteners. Targeting the saccharification step, the enzyme produces more dextrose than any other product on the market.
“We see Extenda as an effective way to break through the processing limits that starch producers face,” says Frederik Mejlby, Marketing Director for Novozymes' Grain Processing. “Breaking these limits enables processors to reach the industry’s lowest cost of converting starch into sweeteners.”
Extenda is a glucoamylase blend which offers starch producers a wide range of benefits. The resulting dextrose syrup, or D1, is exceptionally pure, and the yield increase means that producers can save raw material input of up to 3% while still meeting production targets.
Extenda also ensures the non-dextrose part of the syrup is lower than ever before, which allows optimal processing conditions for the producers of sweeteners. Alternatively, producers can choose to run with more solids and less water. Not only will this give energy savings of up to $ 1.4/MT in evaporation, it also increases seasonal saccharification capacity of up to 17%, at no capital investment.
Extenda is the third new solution Novozymes has launched for the starch industry in the past 2 years. The enzymes complement each other, for example, Extenda’s benefits can be boosted by combining it with Novozymes’ low pH alpha amylase LpHera®. The starch industry is one of the longest-standing markets for enzymes, and produces a wide range of sweeteners and ingredients used within the food industry.
“Novozymes is proud to continue innovating for the starch industry, offering varied solutions with one thing in common - a focus on increasing yield, efficiency and sustainability in this important industry,” says Frederik Mejlby.
Starch is the energy source of plants and can be found in cereals, tubers, roots and other plants. Globally, approximately 60 million tons of starch is converted into sweeteners and ingredients per year, and these are used in a wide variety of popular consumer food products, including confectionery, soft drinks, sauces and canned fruits.
There are four basic steps involved in starch conversion – separation, liquefaction, saccharification and isomerization. Separation is the first stage where the raw material is milled to separate fractions: the starch from the oil, protein and fibers. Enzymes can be used to ease this process. The next step is liquefaction, and this is where alpha-amylases break down the large starch molecules into smaller ones called maltodextrins. In the third stage, saccharification, enzymes break the maltodextrins into even smaller molecules. And this is where Novozymes’ new innovation, Extenda, can make a difference.
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